SLC hopeful of holding elections on May 31

Sri Lanka Cricket has announced an extraordinary general meeting with a view to holding board elections on May 31 - the day the board's term is set to end - subject to approval from the country's sports ministry.

The EGM will take place on May 19, the date elections were originally set to take place prior to being postponed on technical grounds, and the SLC membership will appoint an independent election committee.

As per the SLC constitution, members need to be given at least 14 days notice ahead of an EGM, and then a further 40 days must lapse before an Annual General Meeting and an election can be held. While this would normally prevent holding elections until the end of June at the earliest, SLC have sought permission from the country's sports minister to hold elections early, so as to be able to pass the year's audited accounts at the AGM.

If elections aren't held before May 31 then sports law dictates that an interim committee be appointed, which would likely mean the present Executive Committee remains in charge until the election date but won't have the power to pass annual accounts. With the deadline for nominations being April 27, SLC believes the 40-day waiting period can be bypassed as no new nominations are being accepted.

It is expected that two camps headed by former SLC office bearers Nishantha Ranatunga and Jayantha Dharmadasa will be contesting against the incumbent board headed by SLC president Thilanga Sumathipala.

Elections were postponed last week by Sri Lanka's sports ministry after it adjudged that by appointing an election committee at an Executive Committee meeting as opposed to at an EGM, SLC had contravened the country's sports law. SLC contested that it had received permission from the previous sports minister Dayasiri Jayasekera in this regard, however Faiszer Mustapha - the new sports minister - insisted on following constitutional protocol.

"Our position earlier was to bring the elections committee into the SLC constitution at an ExCo meeting, and then appoint the committee members at the floor of the house," Sumathipala said.

"Therefore we gave notice to the general membership on April 6, informing them that on May 19 at an EGM [prior to holding the AGM later that same day] we will pass the resolution and bring the due changes to our constitution. And subsequent to that to appoint an elections committee.

"For this we informed the former minister of sports and with his permission we agreed to go ahead, but we have since been informed that it is better that we follow proper procedure."